Bible Reading: Titus 2:7-8, 11-14
As Jesse and his dad walked through the mall, Jesse talked about how he and some kids from church had collected cans from people around the neighborhood for a fundraising project. "When I knocked on Mr. Martin's door, he wouldn't give me any cans to take back to church. He said he didn't even believe I was a Christian!"
"I'm sorry to hear that," said Dad. "That was an unkind thing for him to say. Have you said or done anything that would make him feel that way?"
"I don't think so," Jesse answered. But then he remembered something. Maybe Mr. Martin knows I'm the one who knocked a ball through his window, he thought. I was going to tell him, but the other guys said I shouldn't. They said he'd never know who did it. "Nothing much, anyway," Jesse added when he noticed Dad frowning at him.
Just then they arrived at a sporting goods store. Jesse pointed to a football displayed in the window. "Look! There's the ball I want. Can we go in and see how much it costs?"
"How do you know they sell that kind of football here?" Dad asked.
Jesse gave his dad a questioning look. "How do I know? It's in the window! Everybody knows the stuff you see in the window is sold in the store."
Dad nodded. "It makes sense that what we see out here is what we believe we'll find inside. That's how it is with people too. What they see in our actions is what they believe we're like inside. So for someone to believe we're Christian, they need to believe we belong to Christ--that's where the word Christian comes from. They need to see the love He has put in our hearts flow out through our actions. And when we fail to show His love and do something hurtful, we need to admit our mistake and try to make things right." Dad headed for the store's entrance. "Well, let's go inside and see if you can afford that ball."
Jesse hesitated. "Dad, wait!" he said. Then he told him about the broken window. "I'm not going to buy a football now," Jesse said. "I need to use my money to pay Mr. Martin for that window."
–Mary Rose Pearson
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